The Strange Switch
by LanternLover23
Summary: After Lantern disappears a flash of light minutes later she is replaced by another Lantern. But this Lantern, this Lantern is 17 years old- and yeah, a little different. How? Read to find out. (sorry about the cover image; it kinda sucks) Sidestory now on Fictionpress! Check it out!
1. The Switch

**Ever read 3P's profile? Best ever. I love how she came up with different looks for different ages, 14-17. So, I decided to do the same thing. As I did so with my 16 and 17 year old self I thought- what if- SPOILERS- happened? So, I came up with this story and started it at 3:47 AM in the morning before my excitement for the story dissipated overnight. Without further ado, "The Strange Switch!" Episode One! Same GMAD members as from my other story, "Who Ate the Last Cookie?". Let the fun begin, the mysteries unravel and chaos ensue!**

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Normal GMAD meeting. Much less a 'meeting' and more of a hangout. Zilla and Litwick were talking together, Ace, Dream and Wish were talking together and Phoenix, 3P and Lantern were talking together. The TV was on. They were surprised Lantern's room had a TV.

Phoenix and 3P were trying desperately to explain something to Lantern.

"So.. what your saying is.. signing the contract to work in a Industrial Anvil Factory is _bad_ idea? Why is that again?"

3P said, "Because one could land on your head, cartoon style and you could loose your memory or die or something along those lines!"

"And I suspect the salary is criminally small." Phoenix added.

"Why are we even talking about this?" Lantern pointed out.

Phoenix face palmed. "You were the one who brought it up."

"I was?"

3P sighed. "Yes, yes you were."

Lantern laughed nervously and scratched the back of her neck.

Lantern got up to see what Dream, Ace and Wish were doing. They were playing some sort of game, it seemed. Chess/poker/checkers/war. Yikes.

"I WIN!" Dream said, putting down a card.

"What? But I moved my queen to the right place!" Wish said, extremely confused.

"What're playing?" Lantern asked curiously.

"Chess!" said Wish.

"Poker!" answered Dream.

"Checkers!" Ace exclaimed.

All three looked at each other, blinked before realizing they all were playing different games.

Lantern left them to see what Zilla and Litwick were discussing. But before she could get close enough to them and say something she staggered. It felt like she was a glass of orange juice, and she'd been flipped upside down and emptied into a sink. She felt like an invisible force was draining her energy.

Her hands started to shake and a feeling of dread filled her gut despite the feeling sucking out her consciousness.

She looked down and saw her form was beginning to fade. She started to call out to the others but her throat was abnormally dry.

Suddenly a shaft of greenish light like the Northern Lights filled the space around her alerting the others and Dream dropped her cards. "Lantern?"

"I'm not controlling this dimension travel!" Lantern yelled as loud as she could with her slowly echoing away voice.

Wish got up. "You didn't-"

"I didn't cause this one! It's a rift! I can't control it!" she was slowly beginning to fade out of existence.

Phoenix ran over to her. "LAN-"

"I didn't cause IITTAAAAAAAAAAAAHH!" With a cry of agony she stumbled backwards and then disappeared into thin air.

For a moment the GMAD members just stood their shocked, until Ace stated the obvious. "She's.. gone.."

Phoenix regained her senses. "She can travel on her own! I'm sure she'll be back soon." This reassured everyone for awhile...

One minute.

"Where is she?" Dream asked no on in particular.

Two minutes.

"I have no idea." Wish said after a long silence.

Three minutes.

"What is she possibly doing in that other dimension?" 3P said loudly.

Suddenly shafts of light like the ones that had appeared three minutes ago when Lantern disappeared- reappeared and a spark of hope entered the GMAD members.

A body began to form through the light, before the light zapped out of existence, leaving the new person to stagger before standing up straight. The GMAD members held back gasps.

It was Lantern- yet- it wasn't.

It looked a lot like Lantern but the black markings under her eyes now covered parts of her cheeks and her freckles were slightly faded. This version wore a black-and-red striped sleeveless shirt. She wore tons of bracelets and watches up and down her arms stopping at her wrists. She wore several belts- all overlapping each other- around her waist and the area above and below it. The belts held daggers, sword and hand held machines. But when she stepped forward they didn't move, didn't make any noise. She wore green jeans that were wider at the bottom and almost covered up black sneakers.

And she was much, much taller, like she was 17 years old. And the air around her still held her normal friendliness. But it was also cold and dangerous. A humongous sword was strapped to her back, the Jack O Lantern gone, revealing a slick and wide black, deadly looking blade.

No one made a move, hands slowly crept to weapons. The tension was so thick you would've needed a chainsaw to cut through it.

Lantern- they weren't even sure if it was Lantern, she looked older-'s eyes darted from each person to person quickly. Analyzing them.

When… _Older_ Lantern talked, her voice was smooth and steady without and hint of hesitation or joking around. Scary. For Lantern anyway.

"Hello, then."

Suddenly Ace broke the silence and asked, "Who are you?"

"Hm… Ace? Is that you? You look a lot _younger._ Is this-" she paused, raising an eyebrow. She pinched the bridge of her nose. "I'm in the past." She swore under her breath.

The GMAD members were still standing exactly were they were. She _looked_ like Lantern, she kinda _felt_ like Lantern, but she didn't _act_ like Lantern. Was this- was this Lantern from the future?

Lantern pretended not to notice their confusion. "That's _the_ last time I let anyone else control the Time Machine 09 besides me. Well, I guess I should explain. Hi, it's me Lantern, but I'm from the future."

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 **DUN DUN DUN! Next chapter will be ASAP! Thought of this and knew I couldn't put it to rest! Sorry if the chap was short! Until next time!**


	2. A Machine?

**Okay, I'm back. Let the fun begin, mysteries unravel and chaos ensue!**

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 _"That's the last time I let anyone else control the Time Machine 09 besides me. Well, I guess I should explain. Hi, it's me Lantern, but I'm from the future."_

Awkward silence. Again.

"The future?" Dream finally said.

"Then where's the other Lantern?" Wish asked.

Older Lantern blinked. "Other…" She looked around noticed her past self wasn't here. "Well.. this is just _magnificent._ " she said, sarcasm dripping off her voice. "First of all, what happen to the other Lantern?"

"She disappeared." 3P answered, unsure.

"How?"

"Flash of light."

"Was it greenish, like the northern lights?"

"…Yes?…"

"This is bad. Second of all, what year is it?"

"2015." said Phoenix, slightly unnerved at the fact Older Lantern had so many weapons strapped to her waist.

"Well, this sucks. Wrong coordinates. _Curse him._ The Time Machine should've came with me." she gestured to the room. "And as you can see, there is no huge, metal bronze closet around here, huh?" The last part was extremely sarcastic.

"Wait!" said Dream. "Do you know what happened to other Lantern?"

"Well, I'm guessing we swapped places. She's probably in 2019 right now. What's she's doing? I don't know."

"Does that we're stuck with a 17 year old Lantern forever?" Phoenix said without thinking. "Uh… sorry." She added, genuinely sorry.

"No problem." Lantern said, giving her something of a lopsided smile.

For some reason that relaxed the GMAD members a bit. 13 year old Lantern smiled at least two times a minute. Older Lantern had been here for three and hadn't shown any sign of joking around, at all. She used to bouncier, and a lot less serious.

This meant at some point in the future, Lantern was going to change and start to be cold. But what exactly caused the change?

And why exactly was the sword so huge?

"So." Older Lantern said, clapping her hands together to get their attention. "the only option is to make another time machine here. Then, you should get your Lantern back as soon as I leave."

"Should?" ask Ace.

"Well," Older Lantern's grin faded and she went back to frowning. "Yeah. Did she say she was going through a rift?"

"Yes?" 3P answered.

"Well then. My guess is right. I was never the best mechanic but I do have a small way with machines. Where do you keep the tools?

"Wait… you're actually building one… here?" asked Wish, arching an eyebrow.

"Yeah…" Older Lantern looked slightly miffed. "So?"

"We're helping you." Dream said.

"Why?" Older Lantern asked without a simple 'thank you.'

"If it'll get the younger Lantern back, I'm all for it." Dream answered, crossing her arms. The other GMAD members nodded.

Older Lantern blinked. "O…kay then." She gave another crooked grin. "Already sick of me, 'eh? Let's get to work on that machine."

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 **Sorry it was so incredibly short. Don't forget to review.**


	3. Progress

**I'm no longer short, I'm as tall as tree! And for you all, here's chapter three! Sorry, I suck at rapping. Let the fun begin, mysteries unravel and chaos ensue!**

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 _"Already sick of me, 'eh? Let's get to work on that machine."_

And so they did. It was put in the place of Lantern's closet because that's where Older Lantern would put it in the future.

"Why'd you even build it in the first place?" asked Zilla, handing her a hammer.

Lantern came up from under the machine and grabbed it. "Why wouldn't I?"

"Because time travel can be dangerous?" Zilla said.

Lantern came back up again and handed him back the hammer. "Kid, I've gotten stronger over the last few years. Don't underestimate me. Screwdriver." Lantern opened her now empty palm.

Zilla grabbed a screw driver. "Don't call me kid. I could be helping you with this."

Lantern put her elbows on her knees which were somewhat pulled up towards her chest. She made hand gestures as she talked. "Listen here super man I know you got powerful stuff behind those scales but I don't want to bust the machine. And I'm pretty much the only one here who knows how to make it. Ya gonna give me the screwdriver or not, kid?"

Zilla handed her the screwdriver. "Fine, but just stop calling me kid. Technically I'm the older-"

Lantern grabbed it and went under the machine, her answer muffled yet understandable. "Mentally kid. Mentally. You were born around Litwick's time, which means you gotta be really old. But I'm the physically older one here. I'll stop calling you kid but remember that."

Zilla muttered something like a half growl half grunt. It didn't feel like he was talking to Lantern at all, it was like he was talking to a complete stranger who knew what Lantern did.

After a couple more hours Lantern stood up and brushed herself off. She was wearing one of her old white dress shirts and her old black pants. She used some magic to make them fit.

"I'm gonna take a break."

"Okay then. I'm working on the machine."

"Didn't I just say I was the only one here who knew how to build it?"

Zilla held up a piece of blue and white paper between his claws.

"Blueprints. You left them all over the place." to illustrate his point he gestured the the blueprint full room.

"Fine, just don't break anything."

She went to the bathroom, changed back to her old clothes and tightened her weapon belts. She walked down the many staircases until she reach a hall that led to the kitchen. She was going to get a bottle of water. But when she walked into the room she saw Dream was already there, munching on a bag of skittles.

Older Lantern passed her, reached into the fridge, grabbed a water bottle and started to leave. She stopped and sighed. "That's junk food you know."

Dream stared at her. "You love candy!"

Older Lantern shook her head, and left.

Dream tried to follow but when she reached the door Older Lantern wasn't anywhere in the hall to be seen. Wish walked up behind her. "What was that about?"

Older Lantern re entered her room to find Litwick there instead of Zilla.

"Hey." Lantern said, getting his attention. "Where's Zilla?"

"He had some important business to take care of. So I'm going to help work on the machine."

"Fine."

For awhile they just worked in silence, the only sound being metal against metal; a clanging repeating thump.

After awhile Litwick broke the silence. "What happened to you?"

Older Lantern didn't look up. "What do you mean?"

"You've obviously changed, mentally and physically."

"It was a battle. After that, I changed. That's all you need to know."

Litwick decided not to pry.

After a couple more hours they both stood up and stretched.

"Well, we're about a quarter done."

"Definite progress. I'm gonna hit the hay, how 'bout you?" Older Lantern yawned and laughed without humor.

"Yeah." Litwick said uneasily, leaving the room. As soon as he did Older Lantern scribbled something down on a piece of paper. She placed it on her bed. She walked over to the window, and then she jumped. She landed on her feet below before walking off into the night.

She needed some alone time.

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 **This chapter was weak. Anyway, don't forget to review. Bye for now.**


	4. Dreams

**Here's chapter four. Something a little different, and maybe even glimpses of why Lantern's changed. I present to you: Chapter Four! Let the fun begin, mysteries unravel and chaos ensue!**

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Older Lantern glanced wistfully back at the castle she had just snuck out of. Why she had snuck out was a mystery to even her. She just wasn't sleepy. She walked awhile until she came upon a forest, and decided to "train" there. Which meant slashing the life out the the poor trees.

She slid her hand into one her sheaths pulling out a silver, red and white dagger, _Clown._ She used it to repeatedly stab and slash at one tree, so much she was afraid it was going to fall down. When her moves became sloppy and lopsided she knew she was tired, sheathed _Clown_ her eyelids drooping. She snuck back to the castle. She had no idea how long she'd been gone. She quickly climbed up the wall, and crept in through her window.

Gently closing it behind her she sighed. She hoped now that she was in the past she wouldn't have dreams about… _that_ battle anymore.

She quickly took off her belts and bracelets, not even bothering to change into any PJs. She stopped and looked at herself in the mirror. She remembered the battle all of the sudden. Why? She didn't know. But she wondered faintly what would happen if she told the GMAD members here in the past about it. They might try to find a way to prevent it or stop Lantern from changing in the near future. But she knew from enough movies, books and etc not to try to change the future. Bad things would happen.

She blinked at her reflection and frowned. But what if she _did_ tell them about the battle and they _were_ able to prevent it? Well then, she might now change so much. Would she grow up being the same Lantern she had been all along- happy and clueless. She scowled at the thought. The old her was obnoxious- right?

She shook her head violently to clear her mind before walking across the room, but someone knocked on her door before opening it.

"Lantern?" Ace asked, through the crack in the door. Older Lantern froze.

"What do you want?" she hissed, not wanting to wake anyone else up.

"Why are you up?" Ace shot back.

"No reason. _Go to sleep_." she quietly slammed the door in Ace's face, grabbing a watch from across the room. It changed into a padlock which molded itself into the wall and door, locking it. She slid the key in before throwing it lazily across the room. It landed on the far right corner.

She sighed and collapsed onto her bed, not relaxing until she heard Ace's footsteps echoing down the hall. She wondered lightly if she could really sleep without dreams for once. Slowly she closed her eyes, drifting off.

 _~FLASHBACK~_

 _A 14 year old Lantern stepped out onto a battle field with shock written all over her face. What was going on?_

 _She dodged a GMAD member and demon sword fighting. These were- demons? The castle was attack under demons? Why were they here? She dodged another fight._

 _The demon's eyes were red- not their own color. With a jolt Lantern realized they were being controlled. Their screeches were metallic and lifeless, their moves robotic and stiff._ _Definitely controlled. But by whom?_

 _She made a mad dash through the chaos, watching the GMAD members fight around her. Demons weren't supposed to do this! She needed to find who was causing this._

 _And then she saw him. It was Streak._

 _Streak was a tall, one eyed wind demon who had a habit of trying to fight her. She beat him all the time- but now? He seemed so much more powerful. His one big blue eye crackled with madness, a single sky blue stripe running up and down his white scaled body. Barely noticeable wings of rushing wind zapped at a hummingbird like pace on his back. Confidence was all over his face- and his hands were glowing red. He was the one controlling them. She had to stop him before more people got hurt._

 _She yelled to get her attention. He turned to her and smiled a huge fang grin. "Why Lantern! How nice of you to join us!"_

 _"Enough of this Streak! Why are you doing this?"_

 _"Is it not obvious? I want to eliminate the Demon Maiden once and for all!" And with that, Streak outstretched his claws and lunged_

 _~FLASHBACK END~_

Lantern shot up in her bed, her face beaded with sweat. She clutched the blankets so hard her knuckles were white.

"Just a dream… just a dream…" she whispered to herself, calming down quickly. She put up her knees, let out a long sigh and ran a hand through her dark red hair. An hour until the time she was supposed to get up. Train was the only time killer she could think of.

She crept out of the castle, stopping at the familiar woods. She began beating up another tree. She glanced at one of her watches after awhile. Time to go back. Older Lantern snuck back in through the same window, glad no one had come to check up on her. Finally, it was waking time. She undid the padlock and went down to get some breakfast before returning to the time machine again.

' _My decision is final; I'm not going to tell them.'_

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 **Sorry the chappies are getting shorter. Don't forget to review and fave! PM me if you want to suggest anything.**


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